How to become a successful entrepreneur and business owner

So you want to become self-employed? Are you prepared for the challenges involved? Are you prepared to give your project all it requires to succeed? Are you mentally prepared to become your own boss?

You might feel these are just casual questions but I want you to know that they are realistic questions. Most people quit their jobs and go solo without being mentally prepared for the process and that’s why they fail.

To become self- employed and succeed at what you do; you must change your perception. You must transit from a mentality of dependency on your boss to being independent. You have to take control and be responsible for your actions. You must be accountable and most importantly; you must be prepared to face disappointments, you must be prepared to fail because failure is a pathway to success.

Identify your core skill

What are you quitting your job on? What’s your leverage? What service can you offer in exchange for money that people are willing to pay for?

What are your core skills, talent, hobby or passion? If you want to be a successful self- employed entrepreneur, then you must answer these questions.

Find opportunities that others miss

“A good businessman must have nose for business the same way a journalist has nose for news. Once your eyes, ears, nose, heart and brain are trained on business, you sniff business opportunities everywhere.

In places where people see a lot of obstacles, I see a lot of opportunities. At times, there is something instinctive in me that tell me a business opportunity exist even at a place where others see nothing. That is what makes me different, maybe unique.

The first key to becoming a successful business owner is finding the right opportunity; an opportunity that others fail to see. I use the word “learn” because entrepreneurship is a learning process; you must keep learning from the day you start a business till the day you quit the game.

“One of the most stupid things to do is to pretend you are smart. When you pretend to be smart, you are at the height of stupidity.” – Rich Dad

I used the word “learn” because you can never become perfect at spotting good business opportunities; you just have to keep learning and improving your business skills or vision. Becoming a successful entrepreneur or building a successful business lies in your ability to spot business opportunities that others miss; you must be able to see opportunity in problems.

Learn how to raise money

The second key to becoming a successful entrepreneur is to learn how to raise capital. I have said and written it countless times that one of the fundamental function of an entrepreneur is to raise capital; by any legal means necessary.

If you don’t know how to raise capital; forget about becoming an entrepreneur. As an entrepreneur, you must learn to raise capital internally; as well as externally.

Cash flow is the life blood of a business and it’s your job to make sure that cash continuously flow into your business. Show me a successful entrepreneur and I will show you an individual that knows the intricacies of raising capital.